Spectrum of thyroid dysfunction in patients visiting Kantipur Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal

Thyroid disorder is most common endocrine abnormality in the general population and its prevalence increases with age. The screening of thyroid disorder is advised in high risk population. This hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in Department of Biochemistry, Kantipur Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal. Patients having complains of thyroid disease from February 2010 to January 2011 were enrolled in this study. Thyroid parameters such as FT3, FT4 and TSH were measured by ELISA technique. Among total 472 subjects 393(83.27%) were female whereas 79(16.73%) were male. The prevalence of thyroid dysfunction was 36.0% (n=170). The different patterns of thyroid dysfunction in Kathmandu valley were: hypothyroid (11.6%), subclinical hypothyroid (16.9%), hyperthyroid (4.0%), and subclinical hyperthyroid (3.6%) respectively. Subjects having all thyroid parameters normal i.e. euthyroid were 63.9%. In conclusion, this study reveals a higher prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in Kathmandu region. This study recommends community based nationwide epidemiological studies on a regular basis to monitor thyroid dysfunction in Nepalese populations.